Everett J. Waring

Everett J. Waring
Born(1859-05-22)May 22, 1859
DiedSeptember 2, 1914(1914-09-02) (aged 55)[a]
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Attorney, banker

Everett J. Waring (May 22, 1859 – September 2, 1914)[a] was the first African-American person admitted to the Maryland State Bar Association in 1885[4][5] and the Supreme Court Bench of Baltimore on October 10, 1885.[6] He practiced before the Supreme Court of the United States and the Maryland State Appellate Court.[5] He represented individuals involved in the Navassa Island riot of 1889, which occurred after African American men were lured to the island to gather guano to be used as fertilizer. The men were subject to inhumane treatment, low pay, and high cost of goods. He lost the Jones v. United States jurisdiction case and the men were found guilty.

Waring represented the Brotherhood of Liberty.[6] He was cofounder of the Lexington Savings Bank in 1895, a black-owned business.[6] Waring had legal and financial troubles that led to the bank failing and equity cases filed against Waring for unpaid mortgages. As a result, he left Baltimore and returned to Ohio where he established a law practice. He later moved to Philadelphia, where he practiced law. Over his career, he was a newspaper editor and publisher as well as an African Methodist Episcopal Church minister.


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  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Smith was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Death was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Everett J. Waring obituary". The Philadelphia Inquirer. September 4, 1914. p. 7. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  4. ^ "Everett J Waring Is First Black Person Admitted to the Bar in Maryland". Gibson City Courier. Gibson City, Illinois. October 16, 1885. p. 2 – via newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b Pugh, Catherine E. "Milestones in Black Education". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c Bogen, David S. (May 1986). "The Forgotten Era" (PDF). Maryland Bar Journal. XIX (4): 10, 14.